People who say they are fat when they're not

[lcyb]

Has anyone else seen this on social media - somebody takes selfie showing their body with caption such as "time to get rid of this belly" or something along the lines of.

Somebody I follow has just done this, except she's not fat at all, the very opposite. She actually had lipo and other work done to her body and everyone always comments about how amazing she looks. She's actually paid thousands of pounds to look skinny.

Why do people do this? Is it an attention thing?

I think it's about how you feel. I probably wouldn't be viewed as overweight or fat by people but I am dieting because I know that I will put on weight if I keep eating the way I did over Christmas.

@absopugginglutely If you knew people would view you as fat/overweight would you tell everyone on your SM that you were dieting?

In some cases yes it's an attention thing, wanting lots of validation and comments like "OMG you're so skinny, not fat at all hun" I would say I have a belly that I need to lose, but would never say so on SM or post pics, but if I said it to some people in person they would scoff as I'm a 10/12, so to them that might be on the slim side. They might then say I was saying that I was fat when I wasn't IYSWIM?

I guess it's all relative, so for some people they might call themselves fat, if they're posting about it on SM with pics then it's more likely that it's attention/validation seeking?

@absopugginglutely Sorry meant to say wouldn't, not would.

I think everyone has their own limit beyond which they feel a bit heavy. However, if say you weigh 9.5 stone and your jeans are a bit tight and you would rather be 9 stone, which is perfectly reasonable, I don't think it's OK to go on about it in front of people who struggle far more with their weight.

Attention as is most SM

It’s the equivalent of certain women saying they have no boobs when in reality they have a B or C cup.

MN is full of posters falling over themselves to tell us all that a size 10 isn't slim, and that a size 14 nowadays was actually a size 30 in 1990.

I currently FEEL fat, post second child I’m now 2.5 stone heavier than my lowest adult weight that I was for years before I got pregnant with my second. But I’m not fat by most people’s standards, just fat compared to my norm.

Attention definitely which is the whole reason anyone takes pictures of themselves to post anyway. Fishing for compliments I imagine, but annoying for sure. I would only be confident enough to take photos of myself showing my body off IF I felt happy with my body. I can't imagine thinking "ugh I'm so fat" and then sharing them for the world to see!

What counts as fat though?

Definitely an attention thing. Or just want to feel better about themselves when the comments rush in telling them they're not

If they actually thought they were fat there's no way they'd be showing that part of their body. It's all for the "OMG YOU LOOK AMAZING HUN" bullshit.

Attention seeking. I'm tiny with a tiny frame. Most people look big next to me it's all subjective.

Surely it’s a personal thing. I’m a size 12 but my BMI is above the healthy range and I realistically need to lose 1.5st. I feel fat, chub hangs around my belly. But most fatter people would see that as a gross exaggeration.

It’s the equivalent of certain women saying they have no boobs when in reality they have a B or C cup. I'm barely a 30C, they're certainly not big, the cup size doesn't mean much without the band size.

no one likes to put on weight and they may see themselves as overweight just as many overweight people may see them selves as curvy or normal size

Isn’t attention the whole reason post selfies on SM in the first instance otherwise they would be private photos.

What one person considers their weight and size to be will vary differently from what others think/see.

Oh gosh yes. Thread in style and beauty earlier where there was a debate over whether a size 12 was fat - "perhaps if you're short". I'm short, I'm size 12, I don't feel fat and won't be shamed into it. Deep breath I feel better now

i am always trying to shift my pregnancy weight - and I'm not big/fat, its just compared to my normal body size/shape, im bigger than what im used to. I think you are being a bit judge-y in your post, what's big to you might not be big to others and vice versa, and who are you to say what i can/cannot say on SM? Live and let live OP.

People with real body dismorphia would not put a picture of their 'fat' body on sm.

If she thinks I'm fat then I must be really huge!

I remember the days when if I went over 7 .5 stone I thought I was fat. It was before SM had been invented.

Same @DustyMaiden

I think sometimes, people genuinely feel fat when they are not, particularly if they have been overweight in the past. I was a chubby child who was always teased for it and a size 14 teenager back in the 90s when everyone else was a size 8, and after pregnancy, went up to a size 20. I’m now a 12, and that probably is the weight that suits me best, but in my head, I will always be the fat girl. I could be a size 6, and my mental image will be of a fat girl.